Month: February 2009

Google is back in the business of running small text ads on the pages of its Google News service. This has always has been a lighting rod between the company and some struggling newspapers. It has been more than six years since Google has done this. Newspapers blasted Google for building a competing news site using headlines and snippets from newspaper articles. Google has watched their own revenue sharply in recent months as they look to keep the Google ship on course. Google News automatically collects headlines and article snippets from more than 4,500 news sites and sends users who click on those excerpts to the sites where the articles originally appeared. The service drives significant traffic to many sites. This move by Google to update Google News has put them in a position to compete with news publishers directly. Google has an agreement with AP for content and how they use it, but the do not have such a thing with Reuters. The way it works Google sells ad space on the page for articles searched for a topic like politics. This page features article from over 4500 newspapers, but before the click on the story they may see an ad for Washington Review Magazine. The problem for the newspapers is the fear advertisers will want to be on the Google page that is viewed with all the newspaper stories as opposed to a newspaper website that be a click of this page with maybe a one in thirty change of being viewed.

FaceBook is letting the 175 million worldwide users try their hand at a Terms of Service agreement. Thursday the online social network giant posted that the user community will play a meaningful role in the policy. This will include things like voting on changes. FaceBook officials were clear that users own their own information, and not FaceBook. The voting will be on issues such as privacy, ownership, and sharing information. The TOS will be achieved by reviewing, commenting, and voting on them before they are put in place. When 7,000 users comment on any proposed change, it would go to a vote. The vote would be binding if more than thirty percent of active users vote. As of this post, there are less than 140,000 people in the group, which needs 53 million to make a change stick. When FaceBook started, it was a college students-only site. They billed themselves as a guarded place that gives its users control over who can access their profiles, posts, and even list of friends. This is the fact of the growing pains and this process feel good approach of letting the users decide in the end maybe only a concern to a few and not the many.

NCAA March Madness 20 days
Countdown to Spring 21 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 37 days
NBA Playoffs 50 days
Days until 2010 – 307 days

Well it did not take very long when President Obama handed of his budget to congress he became the highest spender in US history. That only took 30 days, he is if anything a fast study. The budget is full of changes to expanded health care, environmentally friendlier energy policy, improved education, farm payments, and taxes. All we see is higher taxes, soaring government spending and record federal deficits in this budget. These things will double our national debt in seven years while raising taxes on small businesses. Since there is no way to stop whatever the democrats want Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Democrat from Nevada will have the legislation ready for a vote within a month. Here is couple of points as we have only scanned the budget proposal so far. There is an energy piece that includes steps to spur development of renewables and increase efficiency. A national requirement for utilities to produce a certain percentage of their electricity from the wind, sun and biofuels as well as reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The power map is not ready for this and it can only drive up the cost of utilities for the consumers. The other thing that immediately jumped out is to pay down the deficit from all this spending, President Obama has factored in a 5-8% GDP growth to keep everything in balance. There has not been growth that high in close to two decades in fact when we grew at 2.3% the year of the President Bush stimulus checks economists could not believe the impact. Welcome to new America as we have elected hope and change which looks like socialism to us.

We are trying very hard to get on board with this president. It is hard because in the first 30 days he rally has not made many good choices. The cabinet positions, letting congress create the stimulus package, and gitmo camp draw down. Tuesday night we watched him address the joint houses of congress. We watched Nancy Pelosi jump up and down like a cheerleader who does not know the score of the game. He was again well spoken and delivered more of his bring hope to the masses message. The democrats have all drank the Kool-aid so they love the message of hope and change. Three things from this speech we will highlight are just silly. If President George Bush had said them, he would have been ripped apart but President Obama can get away with it. The first is that everyone need to go back to college and take a class, how does this help fix our problems, since Americans have to work two and three jobs to pay for this spending deficit we have there is not time for college. The next thing he said it is no longer an option for someone to quit high school, good luck enforcing that one, he cannot even get his cabinet members to pay their taxes. The last is the feel good story of the night when he declared research grant to find a cure for cancer. Listen this is great and would be wonderful but does anyone think because Obama said it would be done. Does anyone think there are not millions or researchers around the world already chasing that golden goose? We posted this so we can prove four years from now none of these cheering points will even be close to being realized.

NCAA March Madness 21 days
Countdown to Spring 22 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 38 days
NBA Playoffs 51 days
Days until 2010 – 308 days

Be it a song or casual conversation To hold my tongue speaks
Of quiet reservations Your words once heard
They can place you in a faction My words may disturb
But at least there’s a reaction
W. Axl Rose Don’t Damn Me (1991)

In these days of cell phones, GPS and Credit Card Transaction, you can be tracked down in a heartbeat. Remember when you commit a crime that these gadgets and currency options will lead to your capture. We mention this today because in Holyoke, Massachusetts a 23 year old teacher ran away with a 15 year old student. They tracked down because they wee using their cell phones and credit cards. Eventually she used a credit card for a hotel room and that is where they found here. In case you wanted to know what she looked like people were able to post her picture because it was on FaceBook. Currently when you commit a crime or plan to there are some simple tricks that can make you less likely to be caught. First, remove all your social networking photos and accounts. Second, get as much cash as you can before the crime or right after, hit the ATM before you hit the road and never two in any direction. If you leave Massachusetts and the next ATM, charge is in Connecticut on Route 95 you have given up your direction and there is a path to follow. Third through out your cell phone, is you want a phone get a burner, a pay as you go and buy it with cash. The reason to follow these three simple steps is how you can not get caught on the lamb with a 15 year old, two days after you leave in a hotel about 1000 miles away.

NCAA March Madness 22 days
Countdown to Spring 23 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 39 days
NBA Playoffs 52 days
Days until 2010 – 309 days

A San Francisco website called Telonu.com has created free software program widget called Layoff Tracker. It can be put on a Web site or a computer desktop then provide a running tally of the laid off workers from the countries major employers. The tracker uses the data from news reports and company announcements. The program is designed to make it easier to monitor the massive layoffs and downsizing that has been only getting worse each day. The end game of the website is to rate places to work. This way before you accept a position you can see what others thought who have worked there or still do. There is a lot of this kind of review-based information on the Internet, on everything from music to services. This is a natural progression and with unemployment heading toward 8% there will be many people looking for work. It also say a lot about a company when people who leave due to layoff or other reasons speak well of the job they had. There would be sour grapes that would have to be kept in check. Not everyone that has been laid off is going to glow about a company. They though might offer insight to what fell apart and why they think the company needed to let people go. We find the widget itself to be to depressing and hopefully would not want to see our own names flash in the window.

NCAA March Madness 23 days
Countdown to Spring 24 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 40 days
NBA Playoffs 53 days
Days until 2010 – 310 days

This week we highlight last years #28 in the Tea512 smokin sasses of 2008. Amy Lou Adams is a hot on screen presence that she brings to each role. She is not one to light up the screen with sexy scenes and she does not dress letting it all hang out. We choose her today because she is the all-American girl next door and we could not take our eyes off her in the front row of the Academy Awards last evening. Amy Adams was born August 20, 1974 in Vicenza, Italy as her father was in the service stationed in Italy during her birth. She grew up in Castle Rock, Colorado. She trained as a ballerina and sang in the choir. She worked three weeks at Hooters. She began to work professionally as a dancer with a dinner theatre company. She moved from Colorado to Minnesota worked for three years when during a layoff she auditioned for a movie role. Her first role was in the movie Drop Dead Gorgeous in 1999. She then moved to Los Angeles after discussing it with Kristy Alley. We first came to know her in 2002 in Catch me if you Can a Tea512 favorite. She received national attention in the 2005 movie Junebug as well as an Academy Award nomination. She has a vibe about that is sweet and we enjoyed her work in Enchanted, Psycho Beach Party, Serving Sara, Tenacious D in: The Pick of Destiny, and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day. We look forward to the rest of 2009 where she will appear in Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian and Julie & Julia. Something makes her irresistible to look away from as she always captures our attention.

NCAA March Madness 24 days
Countdown to Spring 25 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 41 days
NBA Playoffs 54 days
Days until 2010 – 311 days

We’ve been through this such a long long time Just tryin’ to kill the pain
But lovers always come and lovers always go
An no one’s really sure who’s lettin’ go today Walking away
W. Axl Rose November Rain (1991)

After three days of protest at NYU where students around 10pm on Wednesday calling themselves Take Back NYU! Begin a protest. Students from various city universities gathered in the seating area of the center’s cafeteria at Kimmel Student Center on the third floor. They pushed tables and chairs against the doors and as many as 60 students participated in the initial action. The final count was not revealed but it appears that less than two dozen were still engaged and remained defiant until the end. The university took away power, internet, and restrooms. There were many calls for negotiations between NYU officials and student body protestors after a night of intense rioting. University officials said they tried to negotiate but their patience was running thin. Overnight, they sent a letter warning those involved would face probation, but if they agreed to end the protest the University would not press any charges. Those who were still barricaded in the college cafeteria Friday have finally ended their sit-in protest leaving quietly. The students wanted NYU to release information on its budget and endowment, including staff salaries and financial aid. The students also wanted the university to release its investment strategy and the names of the people and firms involved in it. The protesters also demanding the university donate supplies and materials to help rebuild a university damaged by Israeli air raids in Palestinian. They also want NYU to provide annual scholarships to Palestinian students, beginning in the 2009-10 school year.

Countdown to 78th Oscar Awards: TONIGHT
Countdown to Spring 26 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 42 days
Days until 2010 – 312 days

Tomorrow is the 81st annual Academy Award so we are doing a our annual prediction of who we would like to win. These are not based on performance as we like most people have not seen all the movies. So we hope for our favorites and movies we have seen and liked.

Performance by an actor in a leading role
Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

Performance by an actor in a supporting role
Revolutionary Road (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)

Performance by an actress in a leading role
Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

Performance by an actress in a supporting role
Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)

Best animated feature film of the year
Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount)

We were drilling deeper into the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 or spendulus as we have called it today we are going to focus on how the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food And Drug Administration, And Related Agencies are going to spend the money they have been given. The total cost of the Title I department is $15,641,430,000 that is broken down below as to which agencies get what and how they are to use it. We are not sure how this will stimulate the economy because many of this looks like money for programs that already exist and subsidized and unsubsidized loans.
Countdown to 78th Oscar Awards: 2 days
Countdown to Spring 28 days
MLB Baseball Opening Day 44 days
Days until 2010 – 314 days
National Debt 2/18/1999 5,613,957,968,591.41
National Debt 2/18/2009 10,789,925,775,196.76

So stake your claim, your claim to fame
But baby call another name
When you feel the fire, and taste the flame
W. Axl Rose (1991) Back Off Bitch